Abdelhai Bennani Trio, Waves

Europe-based avant tenor sax stalwart Abdelhai Bennani has been rather amazingly prolific with the number of albums he has released on the JaZt Tapes label (type his name in the search box above to see what I've covered). He specializes in an uncompromising free jazz approach without concessions and without relent. For the latest, Waves (JaZt Tapes CD-052) he fronts a very sympatico trio in a live date from Paris, recorded in 2006.

The presence of Benjamin Duboc on double bass and Edward Perraud on drums does much to drive the music forward.

Bennani gives us at some length his characteristic sound, born of hoarse throated harmonics, swallowed notes, upper register cries and a sort of conversational phrasing. He is in fine form.

Benjamin Duboc plays with a true front-line extroversion, pizzicato-ing with torrents of notes and rumbling double stops and bowing lines that mingle and meld with Abdelhai's in interesting ways. He can and should be listened to closely in interaction with the whole.

Edward Perraud provides exemplary free drumming with exotic sound colors conjoined with dynamic set cajoling.

The music revels in a pure "new thing" derived freedom that may remind you of some of the classic ventures done over the years. The music excels in a stylistic singularity.

So though there is already much by Bennani available out there, this one by virtue of some excellent trio interactions must be counted as one of the more indispensable ones. It is not music destined for great popularity and gold records, surely. But free jazz acolytes will certainly take to it.

Go to Jan Strom's website to find out about how to order this one.

http://www.janstrom.se/6.-recordings/6.3.-jazt-tapes-6267605

Abdelhai Bennani Trio, Present

The Moroccan tenor saxophonist Abdelhai Bennani has been rather prolific in the past few years, mostly with self-released excursions on the cooperative label JaZt Tapes. He's back with a trio outing on that label, Present (JaZt Tapes 038).

This one has some clout to it thanks in part to the trio format. Benjamin Duboc on double bass and Didier Lasserre, drums, have a long and effective involvement in the free music-avant jazz-free jazz scene and their presence gives some dimension to Abdelhai's saxophony.

Maestro Bennani is a player with a distinct note-swallowing way of phrasing, a very grainy sound at times and a free approach. He sounds completely at ease here and the trio thrives in putting together a very loose and free set. It's something those into the new thing will appreciate, as I did.

To find out more and how to order, go to http://www.janstrom.se/6.-recordings/6.3.-jazt-tapes-6267605.

Eric Zinman, Rocks in the Sea

Eric Zinman, pianist of the wider spectrum of possibilities in improvisation, has not exactly basked in the limelight of critical and popular attention in recent years, and yet there is a concentrated consistency of intelligent expression in his music. The same could be said of flute and reedman Mario Rechtern. When the two decided to put their heads together on a somewhat lengthy tone-poem composition-improvisation, there was a compatibility of outlooks that made it a most sensible proposition.

They assembled a quartet by adding the very sympathetic and articulate players Benjamin Duboc on acoustic bass and Didier Lasserre on drums. The four set to work expressing the collaborative idea in a recording session in Paris, 2009. The results are here for us to explore and appreciate on the recently released CD Rocks in the Sea (Cadence Jazz 1225).

Very cohesive "free" playing is the order of the day, a continuous 45-or-so minute performance that brings a beautiful four-way interaction into being. The music explores avenues of introspection and energy in turn, and in the end one is left with the feeling of having traveled some personal distance, of having embarked on a journey in music that somehow captures a little of life the way it is lived today. Or at least that's how it felt for me.

It's a free-flowing tour de force with Eric playing his version of an all-over piano style of energy and emotional precision, with Mario unleashing a barrage of heat, especially on the baritone, and with the rhythm section giving free-thrusting propulsion.

This is music that does not compromise or back down. Avant improv aficionados will take readily to the music. It's a good way to experience the music of Eric Zinman and Mario Rechtern. It is a good addition to anyone's free improv library.